12 May: what is celebrated today

International Day of Plant Health

Plant health is usually an invisible matter… until it is no longer so. This day, observed every 12 May since 2022, reminds us that without plant health there is no food security or stable ecosystems: pests can destroy up to 40% of crops and the impact is multiplied across biodiversity, the economy and the lives of rural communities. The contemporary message insists on a simple, enormous idea —“One Health”—: what happens in a field of crops ends up being reflected on the table, in the air, in prices, and in the future.

International Nurses Day

12 May is also a tribute to those who turn care into a profession and empathy into a method: nurses. The date coincides with the birth of Florence Nightingale (1820), a founding figure of modern nursing and a pioneer in the use of data and statistics to improve public health. Celebrating it means recognising a profession that sustains entire systems: long shifts, quick decisions, constant listening; work made up of technique and humanity, where care is not a symbolic gesture, but a daily practice that saves lives.

International Women in Mathematics Day

In a calendar dominated by urgencies, mathematics seems like background music: it cannot be seen, but it organises the world. This day, launched in 2018, is celebrated on 12 May for the birth of Maryam Mirzakhani, the first woman to receive the Fields Medal (2014). The observance does not merely applaud individual achievements: it turns a spotlight on vocations, barriers and opportunities, reminding us that talent has no gender, but it does need space, role models and confidence to flourish.

World Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Day

There are pains that cannot be seen from the outside and yet occupy an entire life. Since 1993, 12 May has made fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome visible: conditions marked by widespread pain, persistent tiredness and, often, social misunderstanding. The date also speaks to Nightingale’s history, as she spent many long years ill, as a reminder that weakness is not a lack of will. Speaking about it today is a form of respect: listening better, judging less, and making room for realities that do not always have immediate proof in another’s gaze.

European SMEs Day

Among the great economic speeches, SMEs are real life: the corner café, the workshop, the bookshop, the small studio where someone bets on an idea and turns it into employment. On 12 May they receive a European recognition that works like a footnote… but one of the important ones: these companies, with limited resources and plenty of ingenuity, sustain neighbourhoods, create community and keep an economy moving that, without them, would be just a map without streets.

World Salt Awareness Week

From 12 to 18 May, the conversation turns around a discreet presence: salt “that cannot be seen”. It is not only in the salt shaker, but also hidden in processed foods and meals eaten out, and excess consumption is associated with cardiovascular risks. This week proposes a change without drama: learning to read labels, cooking with herbs, returning to simplicity. The idea is not to demonise it, but to regain control: for flavour not to be a trap and care to be an attainable habit.

United Nations Global Road Safety Week

Also from 12 to 18 May, cities look at themselves: speed, infrastructure, habits, distractions. Road safety is not just regulatory; it is culture and design: pedestrian crossings that truly protect, limits that are respected, checked vehicles, constant education. The aim is brutally human: to reduce deaths and injuries in traffic. During this week, the reminder is clear: every journey should be a route towards life, not a roulette wheel.